Liquid Gold

A new exhibit through July 28 describes the other Gold Rush, the one beer brought to Sacramento…

“Liquid Gold” celebrates Sacramento’s brewing history, which predates the Gold Rush but caught steam when the world clamored here for riches.

 

 

Join us for a special event in association with the exhibit, El Dorado in a Pint Glass: How saloons shaped community, identity and politics in Gold Rush Sacramento.

Sacramentans have been brewing beer since the Gold Rush and that legacy continues today in various, local craft breweries. Historian Maryellen Burns and Archivist James Scott invite you to join them at the Sacramento History Museum on Wednesday, July 17th at 6:30 pm to learn all about how this unique history shaped the community, identity, and politics in early Sacramento. Doors open at 6:00 pm for this free event, and while you are here, be sure to explore the Sacramento History Museum’s newest exhibit, “Liquid Gold: Sacramento’s Brew History”.

 

ABOUT THE EXHIBIT

The exhibit includes contributions from 14 craft breweries in Sacramento, Davis, Dixon, Auburn, Rancho Cordova and east of Highway 49 in Garden Valley tell the story of a trade that grew to national proportions in the late 19th Century, then resurged with craft brewing in the late 1970s.

The Gold Rush attracted German brewers pushed west by political turmoil in Europe. They took advantage of the global shipping network to import many of their ingredients, but helped spur Sacramento Valley farm production to supply ingredients locally.

Giants of Sacramento brewing included Frank Ruhstaller and Herman Grau, who eventually teamed up to turn Buffalo Brewing Co. into a western regional brewing powerhouse. The hub of railroads that centered in Sacramento made that possible.

 

The Ruhstaller name continues with one of the latest generation of brewers, as does Buffalo Brewing’s beers. The new brewers strive to make a wide variety of beer styles in local farm-to-glass fashion – and often raise their own crops.

All images are courtesy of the Sacramento Public Library.